Just came across this really solid analysis about the cheapest places to live usa, and honestly some of these towns are pretty interesting if you're looking to relocate on a budget.

So apparently there's this study that identified 15 cities that nail both affordability AND safety, which is actually pretty rare. The coolest part? Seven of them are in Ohio. Like, Ohio is absolutely dominating the cheapest places to live usa rankings. Towns like New Philadelphia, Parma Heights, Berea, Mount Vernon, Hamilton, Brunswick, and North Ridgeville all made the cut.

The price points are wild compared to what you see in major metros. You're looking at homes in the $167k-$313k range, with monthly mortgages running $989-$1,852. Total annual cost of living for these places? Anywhere from $35.5k to $45.3k. That's genuinely affordable. New Philadelphia has the lowest annual cost at around $35.5k and some of the best violent crime rates (0.69 per 1,000). San Elizario, Texas is even cheaper to buy into at $167k average home value.

The violent crime rates across these cheapest places to live usa are consistently low, mostly under 1 per 1,000 in the safest ones. Some standouts: San Elizario (0.10), Columbus Indiana (0.19), and Orono Maine (0.18). Property crime varies more, but generally stays under 6 per 1,000.

Other towns worth noting: New Ulm Minnesota (super low violent crime at 0.29), Yorktown Indiana, and Edwardsville Illinois (which has a livability score of 90, the highest on the list). If you're actually hunting for the cheapest places to live usa that don't compromise on safety, this is solid research to start with. The data's from early 2025, so it's a decent snapshot of what was available then.